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Boosting the green total factor energy efficiency in urban China: Does low-carbon city policy matter?

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Abstract

Low-carbon city (LCC) pilot is a strategic policy to deal with global climate change and energy poverty. Using the city-level data from 2006 to 2019, this paper applies a multiple difference-in-difference (DID) analysis to explore the impact of LCC policy on urban green total factor energy efficiency(GTFEE) and its potential mechanism. The results show that the LCC pilot policy can significantly improve urban GTFEE, and the finding remains robust with various tests. Secondly, we shed light on the mechanism of the LCC policy and explore the possible channels through green innovation and structural upgrading to improve the urban GTFEE. Third, the policy effect is affected by different levels of urban economic development, urban development scale, and urban development types. In cities with higher levels of economic development, super-large resource-based cities, the pilot policy has a more significant improvement effect on GTFEE. On the other hand, in the less developed regions, pilot policies will hinder the improvement of GTFEE.

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Data availability

The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are property of the National Bureau of Statistics; they are available from the corresponding author who will inform the National Bureau of Statistics that the data will be released on reasonable request.

Notes

  1. The criteria for classifying urban population size refer to the Notice on Adjusting the Criteria for Classifying Urban population issued by The Chinese State Council in 2014. Cities with a permanent urban population of less than 500,000 are defined as small cities; cities with a permanent urban population of more than 500,000 and less than 1 million are medium-sized cities; cities with a permanent urban population of more than 1 million and less than 5 million are large cities; megacities are those with a permanent urban population of more than 5 million and less than 10 million.

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Funding

This study was financed by Huazhong University of Science and Technology Special Funds for Development of Humanities and Social Sciences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Economics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 430074, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China

    Da Gao, Yi Li & Ge Li

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  1. Da Gao
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  2. Yi Li
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  3. Ge Li
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Contributions

Da Gao and Yi Li conceived and designed the research question. Yi Li constructed the models and analyzed the optimal solutions. Da Gao and Yi Li wrote the paper. Da Gao, and Ge Li reviewed and edited the manuscript. All authors read and approved the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Yi Li.

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Gao, D., Li, Y. & Li, G. Boosting the green total factor energy efficiency in urban China: Does low-carbon city policy matter?. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 56341–56356 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-19553-9

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